Ecclesiastes 3:11
What does Ecclesiastes 3:11 mean?
A plain-English look at Ecclesiastes 3:11 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Ecclesiastes 3:11 means
This profound verse asserts God's masterful design: "He hath made everything beautiful in its time." It suggests that despite life's apparent contradictions, there is an inherent goodness and aesthetic perfection in God's timing for all things. Crucially, it adds that God "hath set eternity in their heart," implying a human capacity for transcendent thought and a longing for something beyond the temporal. Yet, humanity cannot "find out the work that God hath done from the beginning even to the end," highlighting our limited understanding of God's vast, eternal plan.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000He hath made everything beautiful in its time: also he hath set eternity in their heart, yet so that man cannot find out the work that God hath done from the beginning even to the end.
KJV
King James Version · 1611He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901He hath made everything beautiful in its time: also he hath set eternity in their heart, yet so that man cannot find out the work that God hath done from the beginning even to the end.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949He has made everything right in its time; but he has made their hearts without knowledge, so that man is unable to see the works of God, from the first to the last.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862The whole He hath made beautiful in its season; also, that knowledge He hath put in their heart without which man findeth not out the work that God hath done from the beginning even unto the end.
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752He hath made all things good in their time, and hath delivered the world to their consideration, so that man cannot find out the work which God hath made from the beginning to the end.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890He hath made everything beautiful in its time; also he hath set the world in their heart, so that man findeth not out from the beginning to the end the work thatGod doeth.
Context
This verse provides a crucial theological perspective, directly addressing the tension between the apparent futility of labor (verse 9) and God's sovereign timing (verses 1-8). It explains *why* mankind struggles to find profit, linking it to the divine intent. Here, the Preacher begins to reconcile observed realities with God's hidden wisdom, laying groundwork for his conclusions about human enjoyment and divine purpose in the verses that follow.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Matthew 13:22
And he that was sown among the thorns, this is he that heareth the word; and the care of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.
- Ecclesiastes 7:29
Behold, this only have I found: that God made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.
- Psalms 104:24
O Jehovah, how manifold are thy works! In wisdom hast thou made them all: The earth is full of thy riches.
- Job 37:23
Touchingthe Almighty, we cannot find him out: He is excellent in power; And in justice and plenteous righteousness he will not afflict.
- Romans 1:19
because that which is known of God is manifest in them; for God manifested it unto them.
- Romans 11:33
O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out!
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